what caused the Bangladesh liberation war of 1971?

What was India’s role

and significance in it? Read to know all about the Indo-Pak war of 1971
here.

The war of 1971 or the Indo-Pak war of 1971 or the Bangladesh Liberation
war of 1971 was a revolution and armed conflict sparked by the rise of the
Bengali nationalist and self-determination movement in what was then East
Pakistan.

This war resulted in the independence of Bangladesh from West Pakistan.

What led to the Indo-Pak War, 1971?

Historically, the seeds of trouble were sown in 1905 when Viceroy Curzon
partitioned Bengal based on religion. East Bengal was Muslim dominant
region while the west was Hindu-dominated.

After the 1947 partition of India, East Bengal became a province of

Pakistan and was called East Pakistan then onwards. The east and west
Pakistan were not only separated geographically, but they differed in
language, culture, etc also. This led to problems in governance as well. The
only common ground between the two provinces was religion,

Language controversy

 In 1948, Jinnah declared that Urdu will the official language and
the people of East Pakistan who were bangle speaking, will have
to comply.
 This led to widespread protests in East Pakistan and the
“Language Movement” began for the right of Bengalis to use
Bangla as their official language.
 This movement was led by Sheikh Mujibur Rehman, who joined
the Awami League party.
 The struggle against the Muslim league’s Urdu imposition
continued till the 1960s.

 the “Language Movement” began for the right of Bengalis to use Bangla as their
official language.
  This movement was led by Sheikh Mujibur Rehman, who joined the Awami League
party.
 The struggle against the Muslim league’s Urdu imposition continued till the 1960s.

JOIN CLEARIAS PCM COURSE

Political imbalance

 The Pakistan administration was dominated by West Pakistan and the Bengalis had no
political say in the process.
 East Pakistan had more population than the west but received lower budget
allotments.
 Bengalis were underrepresented in every aspect of administration and military.

Cultural differences

 West Pakistan was dominated by the Punjabi and Pashtun ethnicity, while the east
Pakistanis gave more importance to the Bengali ethnicity over religious identity.
 The population of Hindus was also more in the east than the west, hence they were
considered less loyal by the west Pakistan administration.
 West Pakistanis were more supportive of an Islamic state than East Pakistanis.
 The Bengalis took great pride in their culture and language which, with its Bengali
script and vocabulary, was unacceptable to the West Pakistani elite, who believed
that it had assimilated considerable Hindu cultural influences.

The 1954 provincial elections saw landslide victory of Mujibur Rehman’s Awami League
over the Muslim league. However, west Pakistan was not willing to let a leader from its
eastern provincial wing rule the country.

Riots exploded in the province and using this instability as an excuse, the central government
established the governor’s rule in the province overturning the election results.

In 1956, Pakistan finally got its constitution, and Pakistan was declared the Islamic Republic.
The national parliament was to comprise of one house with equal representation from east
and West Pakistan.

6 point movement, 1966

 This was a movement in east Pakistan spearheaded by Mujibir Rahman demanding

greater autonomy for the region.
  Their 6 demands were: Federal state, all subjects except defence and foreign affairs,
separate currency and fiscal policy, taxation powers, trade, and forex reserves,
separate military and navy.

Agartala conspiracy case, 1968: Mujibur Rahman went to Agartala to seek Indian support
for East Pakistan’s independence. Pakistan charged him with sedition and conspiring with
India charges.

1970 Cyclone Bhola caused floods and 3-5 lakhs deaths in East Pakistan, but the Yahya
Khan’s government did not provide adequate relief. This added to the animosity between the
two regions.

The 1970 election again saw sweeping victory by the Awami League, but Zulfikar Bhutto-led
PPP who won in West Pakistan refused to acknowledge Mujibur Rahman’s win.

This led to civil disobedience and a call for independence in Dhaka and on 23 March 1971
flag of Bangladesh was raised for the first time.

Operation Searchlight

 On 25th March 1971, the Pakistan army struck at the Bengali independence movement
at night.
 Mujibur Rahman was arrested and flown to West Pakistan, many Bengali students
and intellectuals were fired upon and arrested in Dhaka University.
 This resulted in millions of Bangladeshis fleeing to India, mainly West Bengal, Assam,
Meghalaya, and Tripura.
 West Bengal was massively burdened by the rush of the refugees and the state
appealed to the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi for assistance for food and shelter.

Bengali resistance- the Mukhti Bahini

The Bengali armed resistance Mukhti Bahini arose against the Pakistan army and the Indian
forces helped them with arms and training.

India had a very crucial geopolitical motive to help Bangladesh due to the turbulent
relationship with Pakistan. A win for the Bengali movement meant a peaceful eastern frontier
for India. And as an immediate reason, the refugee crisis was becoming a huge economic
burden for India.

On the global scale, the U.S –Soviet tensions were high. India had signed a Friendship treaty
with Russia hence the U.S was supporting Pakistan throughout all this.

The war was on the doorstep now.

. Key Points
 Timeline of India-Pakistan War 1971:

o Political Imbalance: In the 1950s the centralised

Pakistani state was run undemocratically by
a military-bureaucratic oligarchy dominated by
West Pakistan.

 Under this system, Bengalis had no

political say. But West Pakistan
dominance was challenged in 1970
during general elections.
o Landslide Victory of Awami League: East
Pakistan' Sheikh Mujibur Rahman’s Awami
League had a clear overall majority, enough to
become the prime minister.

 However, west Pakistan was not willing

to let a leader from its eastern provincial
wing rule the country.
o Cultural Differences: The then West Pakistan
(present Pakistan), under the leadership of Yahya
Khan, started a brutal assault on the people of
East Pakistan (present Bangladesh) who were
demanding freedom because of the language and
cultural differences between the two regions.

 After political negotiations failed, the

Pakistani army under General Yahya
Khan decided to start the crackdown.
o Operation Searchlight: West Pakistan kicked in
operation searchlight across the whole of East
Pakistan on March 26, 1971.
  This resulted in millions of Bangladeshis
fleeing to India, mainly West Bengal,
Assam, Meghalaya and Tripura.
 West Bengal, in particular, was massively
burdened by the onrush of the refugees
and the state appealed to the then Prime
Minister Indira Gandhi and her
government for assistance for food and
shelter.
o Indo-Bangla Cooperation: With the subsequent
bravery of the Indian Army coupled with the
spirited fight put up by Mukti Bahini — the
Bangladeshi guerilla resistance movement
consisting of the Bangladeshi military, paramilitary
and civilians — defeated the Pakistani forces.
o Defeat of Pakistani Military: On December 16,
1971, Lt Gen Amir Abdullah Khan Niazi, the Chief
Martial Law Administrator of East Pakistan and
Commander of Pakistan Army forces located in
East Pakistan signed the Instrument of Surrender.

 Over 93,000 Pakistani troops

surrendered to the Indian forces and
Bangladesh Liberation forces making it
the largest surrender since World War II.
 The intervention brought a conclusion to
the war in 13 short days and led to the
birth of a new nation.
 Significance of Indo-Pakistan War For India:

o Diminishing the Two-front War Threat: The East

Pakistan uprising provided India with the
opportunity to break up Pakistan and eliminate the
threat of a two-front war in any future
 confrontation.

 Although the eastern front remained

largely inactive in 1965, it tied down
substantial military resources that could
have been deployed to greater effect in
the western theatre.
o Departure from Non-Alignment: The India-
Pakistan war was preceded by the signing of
the Indo-Soviet Treaty in August 1971, which
boosted India diplomatically.

 The victory defined India's much broader

role in foreign politics.
 Many countries in the world, including
the United States, realised that the
balance of power had shifted to India in
South Asia.

How did the Indo Pak War 1971 shape today’s India-
Bangladesh relations?
The Indo-Pak war of 1971 liberated Bangladesh and established a friendly neighbourhood on
the eastern front for India. Bangladesh is India’s largest trading partner in South Asia and one
of the fastest-growing economies. Indian firms have huge investment opportunities in the
country due to their growth potential. Bangladesh is crucial for India’s connectivity and peace
in the north-eastern states.

 India had recently inaugurated the new trade corridor, Maitri Setu Bridge from
Sabroom in India to Ramgargh in Bangladesh on the Feni river in Tripura-Bangladesh
border.
 Bangabandhu Mujibur Rahman was awarded the Gandhi Peace Prize 2021.
 Bangladesh was a special invitee to India’s 75 th independence day celebrations and
President Kovind is part of Victory day celebrations in Bangladesh.
 Bangladesh marked 50 years of liberation war victory over Pakistan on 16 th December
2021.
 The nation celebrated victory in the 1971 war for independence by hosting a military
parade with India’s president as a guest of honour.
Bangladesh has a special place in India’s neighbourhood first policy and the relation is ever
more crucial in the current geopolitical scenario as well.

Indiras role

She visited Moscow - and undertook a 21-day tour of Germany, France,

Britain, Belgium and the USA. She tried to arouse the world's conscience
over the merciless butchering of the civilian population in East Pakistan and
the savagery of General Tikka Khan. Post victory, Indira Gandhi was quick
to announce ceasefire. She made it clear to the world that India's ambitions
were not territorial nor was it revengeful or expansionist. Throughout 1971,
she gave the maximum weightage and importance to military commanders
and did not act in panic or impulse.

Even as India cruised towards a mighty win, the USA tried to intervene,
moving its Seventh Fleet towards the Bay of Bengal. Indira Gandhi was a
picture of confidence and calmness. China maintained its neutrality while
the erstwhile USSR moved a fleet from Vladivostok to counter the USA
armada.